Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Interview with Dave LaMattina and Chad Walker: "I AM BIG BIRD"

UPDATE! As of August 16, 2012, the "KickStarter" event mentioned below has ended with 1,976 fans donating $124,115 toward their minimum $100,000 goal! Way to go fans! This documentary will be as fantastic as the man it is about, Caroll Spinney! Here's to the soon and future success of "I Am Big Bird!"

"Sunny days, sweeping the clouds away..."

As I enter my 40th year of childhood, I recall my earlier years in which a popular tune from Children's Television Workshop (nowadays Sesame Workshop) kept me feeling happy, knowing that all things -- no matter how bad -- would be okay because each day at 3pm I could rush home to the happiest street in the world and visit with my old friends (even when I was little I felt as I had known Gordon, Susan, Maria, Bob, David, and "Mr. Looper" my whole life). There were also my more plush-skinned friends Bert and Ernie, Prairie Dawn, Count von Count, and the furry pals such as Grover, Cookie Monster, and those who would prefer to be left alone like Oscar the Grouch.

But, there has always been one particular character and friend of mine from that great place known as Sesame Street that upon seeing the very image of him and hearing his voice a great joy comes to my face as a smile and stronger happiness wells up in my chest. I even dedicated a painting to him that I took a long, long time on and titled "Big Bird Makes Me Happy."
﻿﻿

Because he does. Big Bird cheers me up whether telling me why I'm special 'cause there's "Just One Me," or that the alphabet can be one big word in "AB-C-DEF-GHI," or influencing me on my favorite number because Big Bird says "I Just Adore Four." It really is a number sublime! For years, my cassette player/radio clock was set to wake me up to "Good Morning Mr. Sun" and who could ever forget that it's okay to bumble because "Everyone Makes Mistakes." Yes, and I even cried with him during the loss of Mr. Hooper, during "I'm A Blue Bird", and cheered with the day was saved in Follow That Bird and Don't Eat The Pictures. Phew! And that's all I can fit in one small paragraph while I can certainly go on and on and on...

And while I have always had this great fondness for this great fellow that Oscar the Grouch calls a big yellow turkey, I don't know if the sweetness of my own creations would exist without my life-long close studies of the great Caroll Spinney who, for these past 42 years, has performed the roles of the soft-spoken, eager to learn Big Bird, and the muck-of-the-street Oscar the Grouch--two characters with two totally different personalities at either end of the spectrum. What other puppeteer can walk around with a television strapped to his neck to see his performance--let alone roller skate? None that I know of. Whether taking Big Bird on a walk down Sesame Street or the times Oscar got a walk around the block by his trash can toting pal Bruno, Caroll made it okay for us to come along and enjoy the scenery.

But, what do we know about Caroll other than this part of his life? We've read a few books and a few biographies that he's been a part of. We've seen him in a few interviews, sure; but, we haven't been able to get really indepth and get a good look at who this man--this friend of our's through our childhood and into our adulthood--really is!

When I first heard about the Copper Pot Pictures documentary "I Am Big Bird," I was thrilled. Finally, a moment of due attention has come to a man who really shaped what Sesame Street was! I would finally be able to jump on board and be a small part of something by donating to a cause and helping get this man's story to the screen by visiting their website on Kickstarter. Then, one day, an offer came to do an interview and I said, "Heck yeah!"

I was able to ask a few questions of the folks involved in the film, and am sharing these with you now.

And before I get into all this, I hope you take a moment to go donate to their cause in the next few days because a documentary of the scope they are making takes a lot of work and a lot of money, and the main thing to recall in all this isn't that you're helping a group make a film, but you're helping make a tribute to a great man who taught you your ABC's, how to count, and to just be happy.

####

For our readers who
are not yet aware, please share who you are, what you do, how long you’ve been
doing it, and what directed you toward this career?

DAVE LaMATTINA: Chad
Walker and I are directing/producing I AM BIG BIRD for COPPER POT PICTURES.
Along with our partner Clay Frost, we formed Copper Pot five years ago to
create films that we'd want to see. While we all came to the entertainment
industry with different backgrounds, we were brought together by our first
film, BROWNSTONES TO RED DIRT, which is about a pen pal program that connected
sixth graders living in housing projects in Brooklyn, NY with war orphans
living in Freetown, Sierra Leone. What interests me personally about docs is
that they're always evolving. You can start down one path and end up somewhere
completely different. It's maddening, but really fun. Making docs allows the
three of us to pick a topic that we love, then spend 2-3 years of our life
becoming an expert in that field.
﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿﻿
﻿﻿

Chad Walker, Dave LaMattina, Oscar the Grouch, Clay Frost

What IS “I Am Big
Bird?”

CHAD WALKER: I AM BIG
BIRD is a documentary about Caroll Spinney, who has been Big Bird and Oscar the
Grouch since 1969. Caroll is 78 years old and he's sill doing it--and he has no
intention of ever stopping.

What project or idea lead to doing a documentary on Caroll Spinney?

CHAD WALKER: It's in
our company mission statement that we look to create films that inspire and
Caroll's story certainly fits that description.

DAVE LaMATTINA: I
always just wanted to be a part of what Sesame Street and the Muppets
do. I just love them. One of my first jobs in this business was as an intern at
Sesame Workshop because I had a dream of writing for the show. The passion was
always there. The event that led to the film was me telling a friend about the
internship. His fiance was there and offered that she was family friends with
the Spinneys. She started telling me all these amazing stories, which I relayed
to Chad while we were filming BROWNSTONES.

CHAD WALKER: Unlike
Dave, I didn't know that Caroll Spinney had been Big Bird and Oscar for so
long. I had no idea one person had done it for the entire history of the show.
And so that fascinated me. Then, to realize that he was 78 and he's doing this
incredibly intense puppet--to picture my grandfather doing that just blew my
mind. The Bird's head weighs 5 lbs. Can you imagine holding that up, take after
take, day after day, for 43 years? It's amazing. We had to make a film about
it.

Why is it important to
represent the story of Caroll Spinney to the world?

CHAD WALKER: Caroll
has impacted so many people, but so few people know who he is. When they start
to see what a remarkable person he is and how he really does infuse himself
into Big Bird and Oscar, they'll want to know how he became who he is. We just
cut a scene about bullying in which Caroll talks about how badly he was picked
on in his youth. In the scene, we cut to the most recent season of Sesame
Street in which Big Bird is bullied. When you see those two stories
intertwined, it's clear that Big Bird is who he is because Caroll is who he is.
People need to know who the man is.

What was the
conversation and the moment that the decision came up to make “I Am Big Bird?”
And, what was then your next step to get in touch with Caroll Spinney?

DAVE LaMATTINA: It was
actually really easy. Chad and I went back and forth and figured this would be
a great movie and it was right up our alley--this was back in 2009. I emailed a
few people from my internship days thinking that we'd never hear back, but we
did within a week. Sesame Workshop has just been phenomenal. They've loved the
idea from the start. They set up a meeting and a few weeks later, we were
chatting with Caroll and his lovely wife Deb.

Describe how you felt
when you discovered that Caroll said it was a go:

CHAD WALKER: We were
pumped. Just absolutely pumped.

DAVE LaMATTINA: And a
little intimidated. This is a great story and we feel a tremendous amount of
responsibility to not mess it up. We're honored they've trusted us with their
story.

What all preparation
did you do before you contacted Caroll, and then what changed in that prep work
before you met him?

CHAD WALKER: We
obviously read Caroll's book, The Wisdom of Big Bird, and watched a lot
of old Sesame Street episodes. We were pretty familiar with his story.

DAVE LaMATTINA: We try
to not over-rehearse our pitches. We want them to come from the heart and I
think that served us well with Caroll and Deb. I think they saw our passion and
I think that's what sold them that we would do justice to putting their life on
film.

What was the experience like meeting Caroll for the first time, and then meeting Big Bird and Oscar or walking onto the Street?

CHAD WALKER: That's a
great question because the pitch meeting was so crazy. Basically, we're sitting
around a table with Caroll, Deb and a few folks from Sesame Workshop. At one
point, Dave was talking to Caroll and while he was, Caroll leaned down sort of
nonchalantly and reaches into a duffel bag. While he's responding to Dave,
Caroll pulls out Oscar, who had been kicking it in the bag. As soon as Oscar
was on Caroll's hand, he came to life. He was blinking, looking around the room
and reacting to things. Then he started staring me down, all while Dave and
Caroll are talking. Suddenly, Oscar yells out, "BORING!" It was
crazy.

DAVE LaMATTINA: And
being on the set was equally crazy. It's strange that being there doesn't ruin
the magic, it just enhances it. We were in Caroll's dressing room with him as
he got ready, we walked out to the set with him, but then he gets in the
feathers and it really is like Big Bird is a living, breathing being. It's
impossible to explain. Big Bird is real.

So, the project starts
and you begin collecting information, interviews, and personal memorabilia from
Caroll: Was the amount of material about what you expected, or you were allowed
into much more than you thought?

CHAD WALKER: In that
same pitch meeting, Deb told us that she and Caroll are somewhat obsessed with
documenting everything they do--a hobby of Caroll's that goes back to the 50s
when he was in the US Air Force. Basically, she said they had photo or video
material of his entire life. She asked if we thought we might use that. We
freaked out. It's a total treasure for a doc filmmaker to be given that sort of
access. It's been so much more than we could've ever hoped for or imagined.

Of the materials (so
far) what has been your favorite piece of memorabilia?

DAVE LaMATTINA: For
me, it's probably the behind-the-scenes stuff that Deb shot during the filming
of China. Look--everything they've given us is simply incredible. Just amazing.
But I have a really fond memory of watching BIG BIRD IN CHINA with my family,
so to see them making that film was mind-blowing. You see the sets, the
characters, the locations and it just brings you back. It made me connect with
the film on a whole new level.

CHAD WALKER: I'd say
the behind-the-scenes stuff Deb shot on A MUPPET FAMILY CHRISTMAS because that
special brought together everyone from SESAME STREET, FRAGGLE ROCK and THEMUPPET SHOW, so the behind-the-scenes stuff is like a super fun reunion. You're
seeing people like Jim Henson, Frank Oz, Richard Hunt and Jerry Nelson work
their magic and then goof around when they're not shooting. It's amazing.

Speaking of
memorabilia, I own the sets from the old 70’s Fisher Price Little People Sesame
Street playsets. What did you have as a kid, or own still today?

DAVE LaMATTINA: No one
has asked us that, but I'm glad you did! My current Twitter profile picture is
of me using Big Bird slippers to put on a puppet show (my brother, the
neighbors and I wrote a little diddy called "The Sesame Gang Rap").
Also, my mom is a bit of a baker and had all these cake pans and made stuff
like a giant Cookie Monster cake. One year we also made Bert and Ernie
jack-o-lanterns. My mom still talks about that.

CHAD WALKER: I'm big
into music, so though I had a ton of Sesame toys and pajamas and things, the
thing I remember loving the most was the Sesame Street Fever album... on
vinyl! I love that. I was psyched when Caroll gave us photos of when he worked
with Robin Gibb.
﻿﻿﻿

This image is by my pal Quinn Rollins who is the expert of all
things Fisher Price Little People (and I'm too lazy to set up my
own collection). Click the image to find his cool site.

Before Sesame Street and the Muppets, what have you learned about Caroll's career that you can share now?

DAVE LaMATTINA:
Caroll's career pre-Sesame Street could be a film in its own. He was a
draftsmen in the Air Force, he was offered a job as an animator at Disney, he
worked for a media company where he shot a campaign ad for John F. Kennedy, he
co-starred (as Goggle the puppet) in The Judy and Goggle Show and he did
about a billion characters on the Bozo show. The Disney thing is wild, though.
Caroll actually was only using puppet shows to pay for gas money and art school
because he wanted to be an illustrator. Then he got to Disney, interviewed, was
in the room with Walt himself and was offered a job. The pay was so bad and the
work was so tedious that he just walked away. Crazy.

CHAD WALKER: He does
still do Picklepuss, which is a creation of his. He's brought Pickplepuss out
for us and he still does a Picklepuss show every year at his family reunion. I
think he also still does the "Punch and Judy Show," though that is an
old British puppet show, not one that he wrote.

What is one thing you
learned about Caroll that surprised you most? Inspired you the most? Did you
learn anything new about Big Bird or Oscar that you hadn’t known before?

CHAD WALKER: I think
his talent as an illustrator has struck me. He is such a talented artist and he
really could have had a very successful career as an artist. As a matter of
fact, he talks about how if/when he retires from Sesame, he'd like to get back
into that, which is remarkable, because here's a 78-year-old man discussing his
second career after retirement.

DAVE LaMATTINA: I
don't want to give away any spoilers, but Caroll has told us some stories about
Big Bird where he's had a very emotional reaction to something that has
happened to Big Bird. That surprised me about both Caroll and Big Bird--how
deeply the two are connected. I was shocked to learn that the Oscar the Grouch
puppet used today (the same one we saw in the pitch) is the Oscar that has been
used on the show since 1969. That was trippy, to realize that we were hanging
out with the same puppet we grew up with.

What would you say has
been the funniest thing you have had happen along the way of this documentary?

CHAD WALKER: When we
had to shoot a Kickstarter appeal video, we were fortunate enough to include a
cameo from Oscar. Working with Oscar was hilarious. Yes, what made it to the
screen is good, but Caroll truly shines with improv, so to be between takes
with Oscar was hilarious. He had lots of laughs at our expense, not in a mean
way, just in a typically grouchy fashion.

What has been the most
fun part of making “I Am Big Bird?” Have there been any challenges?

DAVE LaMATTINA:
Hanging out with the Spinneys has been amazing. My favorite part of this
project has been when we go up to their house to interview Caroll. We always
take a long lunch and sort of get to know one another and share stories. It's
been a special experience for us.

CHAD WALKER: I think
one of the most fun things has been one of the most challenging. The Spinneys
continue to give us hundreds of hours of archival footage, which is amazing to
go through and just so fascinating to see, but it's extremely time consuming.
It's a good problem to have, but it's certainly been a challenge to find the
time to get through it all.

Through Big Bird and
Oscar the Grouch, Caroll has inspired us all. For me, he’s one of those who
inspired me to create fun, funny, inspirational, family-oriented puppets and
comic strips. What have the influences of Caroll, Big Bird and Oscar been on
your life?

DAVE LaMATTINA: I think
I can speak for all of us when I say that Caroll's impact on all of us has
somewhat morphed since we began this project. At first, we approached this film
from a perspective that we were blown away that one guy has done these two
iconic characters for over 43 years. But then, as we got to know the man, not
just the Muppets, we learned what an inspiration he is. He has gotten to the
highest heights without ever compromising his values or who he is. He's really
done what we aspire to do professionally and personally and so he's become
something of a role model for us. He's proof that you can do it the right way.﻿﻿

﻿

Matt Vogel with Caroll Spinney.

﻿﻿

What is left to do to
complete the documentary? How can people help?

CHAD WALKER: We still
have the bulk of our actual shooting to do and between that and licensing some
of Caroll's appearances, we are in need of financing, so we turned to
Kickstarter. Kickstarter
is a crowd-sourcing website that helps artists raise money from individuals in
exchange for products or experiences and has not only helped raise $45 million
for film projects, but also financed three documentaries on the Academy Award
shortlist this year. It has truly become a great way for documentaries to get
made. We have loads of cool incentives to offer, among them are a copy of the
film (essentially a pre-order), an original illustration by Caroll and an
opportunity for a group video chat with Caroll. The campaign is now live and ends on August
16th (2012). You can view all the rewards and PLEDGE here: http://kck.st/NGQAQl

DAVE LaMATTINA: Just
to follow up on what Chad said about Kickstarter: one reason we've decided to
go that way is because the Muppet fanbase is so strong. We're fans ourselves
and we're making this for the fans. Kickstarter is a great way for this
passionate group of people to make their voices heard and be part of something
really special--but they have to do it before August 16th. Happy pledging!

And for fun, here is an unofficial comic strip I did a while back:

Here is some other art I did for fun:

And finally, my own little Big Bird story:

When I was a toddler, I had the Fisher Price Sesame Street puppets and dolls and toys and...everything. My mom and dad were taking me on a trip to the mountains (probably against their will because there was no one dumb enough to keep me!). I remember on the trip up seeing the teepee across the highway at a rest station and who should walk out but Big Bird. When my mom and dad turned the car around and got us there, I noticed (even at that young age) that it wasn't the proper Big Bird because...well, look at those legs! I was finally convinced by this imposter that he was Big Bird's cousin.

But, inside the place, there were big tables with a Cookie Monster wandering around. I enjoyed chasing after Cookie Monster with his smaller version of himself that was on my hand. I laughed so hard my sides hurt. Wish I could find pictures of that as well.

No comments:

About Muley the Mule (dot) Com

P.O. Box 770397, Memphis, TN 38177.
Muley the Mule and Friends Comix and Stories, including the Critter Productions, are always ready to entertain and create networks and friendships. Whether educational or informative, the reader can enjoy the time spent with the MuleyVerse. E-mail us for hire or to ask questions: muleytmule@hotmail.com.
You can also find our editing work via www.toshigawa.com. Open to some commissions (cartoons and puppets), just ask. Titles and Characters TM and C KLWP.